Presently known power supplies, for example Intel™ ATX specification compliant small power supplies, and other miniaturisation designs exemplified by the many varieties of DC-DC or AC-DC “Brick” Power Supply Units (PSU), have significant disadvantages. Known PSUs do not provide overt spatial partitioning of a switching partition, for example, from control, magnetic or capacitive electronics. Energy storage components are primarily larger capacitors, such as electrolytic capacitors which are required to be kept cool, and magnetic components are transformer or inductive devices which are more efficiently run at elevated temperature being primarily ferrite based. Together these two component types consume the majority of spatial volume in the total volume of a contemporary PSU.
While PSU “Hold Time” energy is provided by bulky electrolytic capacitors, the use of higher switching frequencies allows smaller ceramic capacitors and also smaller ferrite components. However, such higher frequencies also incur deleterious coupling between components, higher switching losses and greater losses in the ferrite components. Also higher frequency switching in known PSUs may violate regulatory Electro Magnetic Compatibility standards (EMC). Such switching losses are increased by the reduction of slew rates to enhance EMC internal to the PSU. The waveform switching edges and “ringing” are a result of circulating earth currents, and coupling of current loops where deleterious energy pickup is proportional to the length of return earth paths and current loop areas of the control electronics.
Known PSU devices employ components which are essentially confined to one plane, partition, layer or level of physical construction, within which both magnetic and electrical or charge storage operations or functions occur. In known PSU devices, to avoid crosstalk and electromagnetic interference between components, spatial separation within this plane between components is generally relied upon, thus leading to a relatively large area and consequently large sized devices.
By way of example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,459,586 describes a PSU having a single PCB layer containing both power switches and power control circuitry attached to a heat-sink. U.S. Pat. No. 7,515,412 describes a PSU in which capacitors and magnetic components are intermixed for circuit design convenience.
There is a need for a power supply device or unit, components thereof and/or a method of manufacturing or testing which addresses or at least ameliorates one or more problems inherent in the prior art.
The reference in this specification to any prior publication (or information derived from the prior publication), or to any matter which is known, is not, and should not be taken as an acknowledgment or admission or any form of suggestion that the prior publication (or information derived from the prior publication) or known matter forms part of the common general knowledge in the field of endeavour to which this specification relates.